Vacancy rates to let renters jump for joy

Sydney is one of the most beautiful, liveable and exciting cities in the world. It's no wonder that everybody and their grandmother is banging on the doors, hoping to find a place to live. On the flipside, this also means that finding a property in Carlton and nearby areas to rent can be tough, as you're competing against numerous other individuals.

Just as well that the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales (REINSW) has good news in the form of Sydney's vacancy rates, which indicate there is a solid supply of homes for rent in the Harbour City. According to the REINSW Vacancy Rate Survey for July 2015, the number of properties for rent is sitting at 1.9 per cent.

"Supply is still strong," commented REINSW president Malcolm Gunning.

"Vacancy rates remain close to 2 per cent which shows that supply is starting to meet demand."

Although the vacancy rate had dropped by 0.2 per cent, Mr Gunning emphasised that this was not necessarily something to panic over.

"Despite the 0.2 per cent decline month on month we still think it is a good result and shows a strong stream of property on the market starting to feed the migration into Sydney."

The REINSW found that Sydney's middle suburbs, where you will find real estate in St George and Carlton, saw its vacancy rate fall 0.2 per cent to 1.7 per cent. While not as high as inner Sydney, the reduced cost of living in the city's middle suburbs could make it an attractive option for renters. The latest Housing NSW Rent and Sales report for the 2015 March quarter found homes in the middle ring had rent $95 cheaper on average than those in the inner ring.

Whether you’re buying or selling, the experts always warn that you should try and avoid becoming emotional about property. “When you’re emotional you don’t think as clearly,” they caution, “and you risk making costly mistakes.” On paper, this is a concept we can all agree with. But in practice, there &mldr; Read more